where to even start lol

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Joined
Jan 14, 2025
Messages
3
Location
Cleveland OH
I am currently in the market for my first boat however I have nearly zero budget. With this boat I plan to live aboard it and occasionally cruise the great lakes and possibly travel up and down the east coast.

Recently I discovered a 29ft Ted Lange cruiser in near complete disrepair. This boat has been through the wringer and back, with a 6-inch hole in the hull and engine on its deathbed and other untold maintenance nightmares. Though this thing is almost junk I think I can still somewhat salvage it. What are your thoughts guys? Do yall think I can repair it in around 3 months?

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P.S I will need to get it seaworthy enough by the end of the three months to sail it from Maryland to Clevland Ohio.
 
The boat can be rebuilt.... no question. But are you up to the total task? Have the time to do it? Have the money to make it the way you want it?

It could cost $10,000 or more in pieces and parts if you do it all yourself. $50,000 or more if you hire for some or all of the work. 3 months is ambitious, but I don't know the full extent of all repairs, time you have, tools you have or can be, borrow or steal, whether you will be aboard during the repairs, what your budget per project is, etc...etc....

3 months is not reasonable in my experience if the boat is in bad shape... often there are things you haven't noticed yet or even realize need to be done to safely/comfortably cruise the boat. If asking the question here, you are probably not the guy to rebuild the boat without a lot of assistance.

Then you have basic outfitting costs and cruising costs that you need to carefully calculate. The smaller, less capable vessel can often have higher costs associated with operating it because it is less self-sufficient for longer periods of time.

Plus, that is a great part time boat... living aboard full time even for a solo person would be tough. I lived on a 37 footer of similar design/layout by myself for 3 years and it was tough without a support trailer on land to hold supplies and off season needs.

Good luck.
 
Well, it definitely seems like this project idea is going to be an absolute pain to complete or almost impossible. But to clarify a bit on repair, I'm planning to try to get the boat operational within three months. After I can get the boat to float I'm taking it immediately to Lake Erie for actual repair to take place. Like a possible engine swap or overhaul, re-wiring the electric etc. I would tow the boat with the trailer up to my home port but I do not have money for a capable one. The reason I can only get it operational in 3 months because of summer vacation (Im a student) if I had more time I would just repair the entire boat then and there lol. At the moment I am nowhere ready for this boat so until summer hits I'm going to try find something that better fits my maintenance and logistical concerns.
 
Do not go into boating if you are starting with a nearly zero budget. Better idea is to find someone who has a boat, offer some money for fuel and beer.
 
Some say that a cheap boat is the most expensive boat you can get. Check out “In Too Deep” channel on YouTube. Gus does an amazing amount of work in a very short time but he has a whole lot of experience in boat repair.
 
Have you investigated what it takes to be allowed to live on a boat? I don’t know the rules in your neighborhood but I can tell you that in the PNW you won’t find a slip that would allow that boat. You probably won’t find insurance either.

What are you going to do about your black water? What are you going to do about heat? Have you thought this through are you just dreaming?

I’m not going to tell say it can’t be done. I will say only 1% will succeed from your starting point. You got to ask yourself, are you a 1 percenter or are you just above average.
 
Well, it definitely seems like this project idea is going to be an absolute pain to complete or almost impossible.

At the moment I am nowhere ready for this boat so until summer hits I'm going to try find something that better fits my maintenance and logistical concerns.

OP, I think you're making the right decision in backing away from this project with your budget and within your time frame. I'm on personal old boat #4 and a career of keeping employer's old boats running.

A rule of thumb I use to rough out costs and time. What ever "it" costs sitting on a pallet next to the boat, double that before "it" is in and running when done by pros. To get your time take the 2nd half of that guesstimate as the labor cost. Divide that cost by the hourly rate for skilled techs to estimate their hours. Multiply their hours by 3 or 4 to get your hours unless you have their skills, tooling and work area they have. Is this rule of thumb perfectly accurate? No, but can be a good place to start thinking about the $$$ and time commitment required. Repowering which you may need to do is a good example of the rule of thumb. Replacing an old VHF, not a good example. And if you're installing used gear that rule of thumb is useless at best.
 
i think is better for you start with van conversion.. but my suggestion finish school first.find job ,make some budget for adventure.
 
Welcome aboard, hope you take a wise decision and remember what boat stands for: Break Out Another Thousand and unfortunately that is also true.
If you can do all the work yourself you can keep the cost lower, but you will still need to buy supplies, there is not getting around that. When you cannot do the job you will be taken to the cleaners by most companies. They will charge an arm and a leg and hopefully they will do a good job. If not, you will have to find someone who can repair the damage they did.

Also, don't want to be too negative, but this boat does not really look like it is made for living onboard. It will take a substantial investment to change it into something you can live on.
Good luck.
 
As Tiltrider mentioned live aboard moorage can be tough to find and something you should check into ahead of time. If you can find a place the rent will probably be less than an apartment. Many marina's do not allow liveaboards. I'll suggest looking for a sailboat around the 27 foot range with an outboard might be a good option as a inexpensive liveaboard. One example could be a Catalina 27, they have a lot of space for 27' and can be cheap to own. If you don't know how to sail you can learn the basics pretty quickly and you can just motor around until you learn something about sailing.

Staying under 30' will probably give you more slip options and will have the basics of a dedicated bed for sleeping, toilet, table/hangout area, sink, cooler and stove. You have to be really thoughtful about getting into a none running power boat or one that doesn't float because they can really suck up the money. For example on the Ted Lange boat if the fuel tanks needed to be replaced it may cost between $500-$1,000 vs. $80 tank for an outboard on a sailboat. It's common for 30-40 year old aluminum fuel tanks to leak from corrosion.

Good luck on you search!
 
Well, it definitely seems like this project idea is going to be an absolute pain to complete or almost impossible. But to clarify a bit on repair, I'm planning to try to get the boat operational within three months. After I can get the boat to float I'm taking it immediately to Lake Erie for actual repair to take place. Like a possible engine swap or overhaul, re-wiring the electric etc. I would tow the boat with the trailer up to my home port but I do not have money for a capable one. The reason I can only get it operational in 3 months because of summer vacation (Im a student) if I had more time I would just repair the entire boat then and there lol. At the moment I am nowhere ready for this boat so until summer hits I'm going to try find something that better fits my maintenance and logistical concerns.

What everyone else said... restoration costs, insurance potential, liveaboard-friendly marina (with space), specialized tools (and tool storage), etc etc etc On top of that, a 3-month restoration is nowhere near reality.

And I don't think anyone yet mentioned winter weather in Cleveland. Winter aboard presents additional challenges for at least heating, freshwater supply, waste handling, personal hygiene (picture schlepping yourself up an ice covered dock to get to the marina facilities for your early morning dump...), dock safety (that ice is probably still there), and ice around the hull.. FWIW, we just had to plug in our de-icer yesterday, and Maryland weather is likely MUCH less challenging that yours.

And the "sail it to Cleveland" part would come with it's own hurdles, especially the cost of fuel.... which would be way big buck$$$$$. Cheaper to buy the trailer too, transport over road.

All that said... your idea about restoration maybe isn't all that bad. As long as you can accept it'll cost you serious money to do it, even if you do almost all the work yourself. For example, the ad says the engine is all there but needs work... but the ad also says the boat was hauled for an engine replacement... suggesting that the "all there engine" won't be the real solution.

IF the hull is otherwise sound (aside from that 6" hole thing), I'd guess you'd be starting around $25K-ish if you don't have to hire out too much work. (Around here, yard labor gets billed at about $85/hour and skilled techs -- engines and so forth -- run between $110-150/hour).

-Chris
 

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